Palmer program helps youth recover from drugs

Offering a second chancePalmer program gives youth an opportunity to recover from drugs

RICK BURLESON, HOUSTON CHRONICLE

Published
5:30 am CDT, Sunday, May 29, 2011

Houston, we have a solution.

At a time when budget shortfalls are threatening services locally and statewide, the Palmer Drug Abuse Program continues a tradition that in June celebrates its 40th year of service: Providing young people with the tools they need to experience a successful, long-term recovery and giving parents the support and guidance they need to deal with adolescent substance abuse.

But what truly separates PDAP from other programs — and makes us a unique solution — is that all of our services are free, underwritten by the generosity of the Houston community and unburdened by the fiscal constraints facing governments. This is the only program in the city where a 15-year-old can walk in and say, "I want to get sober," and no one will ask how much money they have, what their family's income is, or whether they have insurance.

PDAP's origins date back to 1971, when Father Charles Wyatt-Brown, rector of Houston's Palmer Memorial Episcopal Church, began holding meetings to assist young people with alcohol and other substance-abuse problems. These sessions were not focused on treatment or therapy and didn't promote or encourage hospitalization. Rather, they relied on a modified 12-step program similar to the one used by Alcoholics Anonymous that was designed to help the kids realize that if they loved, accepted, and supported one another, they could go forward and live a sober, happy, stable life.

But more than that, these young people discovered that through loving and helping each other - through the strength and unity and compassion of their peers - they felt better about themselves. Today, while PDAP has grown to six satellite locations throughout the city and serves between 550 and 600 kids annually, the principles of understanding, self-awareness and love that defined us 40 years ago remain the foundations of the program and its mission.

The benefits of this approach speak for themselves: So far in 2011, 70 percent of the young people who actively participate in PDAP programs achieved 30 days or more of sobriety.

There are a lot of reasons for our success that go beyond our core services, however, including community awareness initiatives such as "lunch and learns" with businesses, partnerships with education and hospital groups, and prevention services to churches. But a critical factor, and one that is central to the PDAP solution, is a commitment to helping parents as well as young people.

Like their children, most parents of the kids we serve don't need therapy. They need support. They need a place where they can talk about issues, share experiences and gain insights. And while we never forget that the young people who come through our doors are PDAP's primary clients, we also recognize that parental involvement and understanding is vital to their child's progress: When parents take a role in the recovery of their son or daughter, the chances of the child staying sober increase by about 80 percent.

So on the one hand, we are providing young people - regardless of their degree of substance use or abuse - a safe place to come, to have fun, to engage with their peers, to learn social and leadership skills and to be around other kids who have made the choice not to take drugs or consume alcohol. And on the other, we are giving parents a safe environment to engage with their peers and to participate in their children's progress along the road to sobriety. Everybody wins.

As PDAP moves into its fifth decade, our services have never been more relevant. And while we have seen great accomplishments over the years, the job is never really done. With the continued help of the community, we hope to broaden our offerings and outreach, improve our facilities, and expand into areas not currently being served. Fortunately, we are in a city of enormous heart that understands the importance of philanthropy and the worth of what we do.

While the tangible objective of the Palmer Drug Abuse Program is to help young people get sober and stay sober, it is really about much more than that. It's about giving kids what they need to succeed: to be happy and joyful without alcohol and drugs, to be able to confront and overcome the challenges of day-to-day existence, and to take the fullest possible advantage of the opportunities life presents. Stated differently, it's about choices and change, courage and character, strength and self-acceptance.

For all the complexities of substance abuse, PDAP offers a solution that at the end of the day is pretty simple: We offer young people - whether they're from rich homes or poverty-stricken neighborhoods, a second chance - a chance to recover and become contributing members of society. The fact that our services are free may make them unique. But the fact that they create, foster and nurture hope makes them invaluable.

Burleson is managing partner of Burleson LLP and chairman of the Palmer Drug Abuse Program capital campaign.